Michele Rollins Joins the “Let Them Eat Want Ads” Caucus
Let Them Eat Want Ads — that is what Greg Sargent has named the GOPers who cluelessly think that the reason why people are unemployed is because they get too many unemployment benefits.
Rollins was at a campaign event in Rehoboth, when she took the opportunity to remind people of how far out of touch one can be when one is accustomed to seeing the world from your porch at Rose Hall. When she was asked by a potential constituent if she would support proposed extensions to unemployment benefits:
“Truthfully I probably, lets see 99 weeks is almost two years. A few weeks shy of two years, 52, 52, 104. Probably at week 80 I would have made sure that everybody got a notice that week 99 was coming and the benefits were going to be done. Um… someone who hasn’t worked in two years, pretty hard to get energized to go back to look for a job. I know that this is a bad market and this is a bad time but you just cannot keep paying people, cannot keep taxing us to pay people to do nothing because they will continue to do nothing for a very long time and I feel we are entitled to a little more than that. Against it.”
You can hear the tape of this answer from Rollins herself here (not-embeddable, I think).
So listen up Delawareans — Michelle Rollins thinks that the reason you are unemployed for almost two years is that you are happy collecting a government check. Not that her party crashed the economy and there are way fewer houses and buildings being constructed; or that manufacturing and retail jobs have disappeared because people are still cautious about buying things. Know that her agenda if elected would be to make sure that the working families hit hard by the repub-engineered recession would be thrown an anchor.
But people who married their money couldn’t possibly grasp the plain idea that no jobs is the reason why so many don’t have jobs. And nor do they know anything about being unemployed, either. Looking for work IS a full time job.
How long should unemployment benefits last?
While the unemployment rate is this high, indefinitely.
1- Michelle Rollins already had plenty of money before she married John Rollins. Her father owned a seat on the New York stock exchange.
2- Rose Hall is a museum.
3- Talking about “let them eat cake”, Chelsie Clinton is having an 11,000 dollar gluten free cake at her royal wedding.
Chelsea Clinton isn’t telling unemployed people that they’re lazy. Nice try at diversion.
No, millionaire Michele Rollins, who married into money, is telling people who are unemployed that they’re greedy and/or lazy. That takes a lot of nerve and a lack of understanding. She’s obviously completely out of touch with what’s going on. Why should she know, she’s never had to worry about paying her rent or paying for medicine for her child. However, she is trying to tell us that she will best represent OUR interests in Washington. NOT
Greed and laziness are the primary drivers of innovation.
Why isn’t the DE DEM Party given credit for this post? We all got the same presser they sent to you, Cass.
The Rose Hall Resort and Spa is always trying to fill openings for grounds keepers, and chamber maids – so naturally she thinks electricians who are out of work are lazy.
I don’t think that this is a cut and dry issue. On one hand the unemployed have paid into the system and need to be helped. On the other hand I think that there needs to be some pressure to get back to work. Unfortunately there is a new reality in the market and many job opportunities aren’t going to be as attractive as the jobs they previously have held. I think there are work opportunities but many are holding out hoping to replace their previous situations. The unemployed ranks probably looks like a bell curve. A number at one end scamming the system, a number at the other end truly unable to find work, and most somewhere in between.
The blog police have arrived. Everyone remain calm.
What are we becoming as a nation? people like the GOP look at their fellow Americans, fellow human beings… and assume they are scamming, or lazy, or should take a job as a shit-scooper.
I dare any one of these “the unemployed are that way because they choose to be” monsters to quit their job, with the health coverage and salary and vacation and take a minimum wage job that MAY offer full time and still try and feed their family. These people disgust me. They have no idea what the reality is. They just listen to their gold-schilling conservative TV leaders and assume their countrymen are out to get them and their wealth.
Total greed. Total selfishness. Totally un-American.
Let’s look at one of these selfish bastards’ claims one by one.
“On the other hand I think that there needs to be some pressure to get back to work. ”
I’m sure bills, food, and charges of laziness from people like you is pressure enough.
“Unfortunately there is a new reality in the market and many job opportunities aren’t going to be as attractive as the jobs they previously have held. I think there are work opportunities but many are holding out hoping to replace their previous situations”
So by this Tbag logic, a master machinist who spent 10 years working hard and perfecting their craft shouldn’t be so closed minded to think he should get his job back after a rich banker fucked up and killed the company he worked for. he should thank the great Free Market that it offers him a job cleaning toilets and Mcdonalds.
“The unemployed ranks probably looks like a bell curve. A number at one end scamming the system, a number at the other end truly unable to find work, and most somewhere in between.”
In a normal environment this cynical snobby assessment may carry water, but the economy tanked because of people who are still getting bonuses and passing them on to Conservative politicians to keep their money flowing. Today however, because of the afore mentioned Market worshipers, the numbers of the scammers have risen too? Bullshit. Pull your head out of Glenn Beck’s drug addled rear and stop blaming the victims.
Anvil has the most reasoned reply–‘cuz I’ve seen the whole curve. 99 weeks is a heck of a long time to keep giving “allowance”, as the grass is growing waist high. But their job wasn’t grass cutting…….Sorry, I believe in dignity with all work. And a bunch of Americans don’t.
There are 5 unemployed people for everyone job opening. 5! That means high unemployment. Some of you need to spend some time talking to the long-term unemployed for a while because you seem totally out of touch.
We’ve had >9% unemployment for a long time now. Businesses are making record profits but they’re still sitting on their cash instead of hiring.
Welcome to America….. spend years working hard at your craft, getting better and more valuable, climbing that tough salary ladder to where to can provide a good life for you and your family.. then have it taken all away by a CEO who get s a bonus for making your job disappear…. wait, the insults aren’t done yet!! Now your countrymen (who ironically all claim to be better Christians with better morals than you) who still have a job will call you lazy and unmotivated if you can’t find work, or refuse to sell French fries to their overweight children.
“Bullshit. Pull your head out of Glenn Beck’s drug addled rear and stop blaming the victims.” I appreciate your courteous and thoughtful reply. Sadly it is the common level of discourse in this country. By the way, I do agree that Glenn Beck is a self-serving idiot.
Anvil has a point that work is better than unemployment payments, which is hard to argue with. The US came to the same conclusion in the 1930s when we created the WPA and other direct jobs programs.
Anvil is unwittingly presenting the case for a new WPA program.
he blog police have arrived. Everyone remain calm.
As if no one would read Greg Sargent, without press releases.
And for the people who seem to think that 99 weeks out of work is a sign of laziness in a major recession — with almost 10% unemployment — need to explain where all of these jobs are that these people can get. Because there would not be unemployment at this level if in fact there were, you know, JOBS to be had.
funny how you didnt address my response to your other gems. Maybe an ignoramus like Rick Santelli is more to your liking.
I bet she has no idea what unemployment pays in DE. Does any sane person really think that people who have worked for years to make life better for their family and loved ones now decide that unemployment is the way to go. Yep…unemployment sure beats the 529 when it comes to saving for your kids college fund. We don’t need theories…we have real life examples before us. I know many people who have lost jobs where they worked for 10, 15 or 20+ years…they are all looking for work. And all of them realize that they can’t get back to where they were. I don’t know a single person who became unemployed over the past few years and is now happy to be on unemployment. Does anyone?
It’s not so bad doing manual labor. My appetizers at dinner used to cost more than I make in a day now, but hey wtf ,that’s life. If I can do it so can other healthy people.
well, enough procrastination, the grass is dry now, and it’s time to go give the tourists some fresh cut grass to walk on for the week end.
now he’s pretending to be a landscaper.
She seems to not wish to be called a NAZI by her esteemed primary opponent. somebody should tell her to look out the window of her hotel, the track has LEFT turns:)
I’m old enough to remember Reagan, with 10.5% unemployment, holding up a copy of the Washington Post help wanted ads and pointing out that there were jobs available. Of course, most of them were for jobs with advanced skills.
Best described by the sorely missed Art Buchwald:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7NElAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-_MFAAAAIBAJ&dq=reagan%20washington-post%20help-wanted&pg=4283%2C475640
or here:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KrIfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cNcEAAAAIBAJ&dq=reagan%20washington-post%20help-wanted&pg=2545%2C2529169
The unemployed should follow Christine O’Donnell’s example and run for office. Duping tbagz out of money to cover the rent is easier than digging a ditch.
I remember those Reagan years, too. I interviewed for a delivery job in and around Wilmington. 400+ people applied. I was working a good paying temp factory job at HP and a “cash under the table” job for a cabinet installer. I didn’t get the job.
I hate to sound self righteous, but if this recession has taught us anything, alot of “jobs” are redundant or just unnecessary. MOST people are overpaid for what they do.
How many of us have griped about unproductive meetings or rediculous protocols and processes? I assume most who post here have IRAs, 401ks, 403Bs, or other retirement schemes, I know I do.
Kind of a rant, I know, but enough is enough already. If you have been on uneployment for 99 weeks, then you aren’t working hard enough. Sorry, but that’s the truth.
I have to go to bed now. In five hours I have to go to work at my other job. A job that I don’t particularly love, but the “night shift” on a Friday pays better, and you don’t have all those other unnecessary distractions that increase cost$ and waste work time.
so i guess the Tbags cant blame Obama for the unemployment anymore. Right Bagz? because it is the unemployed’s fault. I suppose you wont be making obama-hitler signs anymore right?
I’m no tea bagger, dude, there is work to be had, it just might crimp your style a bit. Just think, all those folks working at Drinking Liberally last night were, in part paying for those who wouldn’t “stoop” to serving dinks in a bar.
It is still far better than subsistance farming in sub-saharan Africa. WPA all the way!!! What nothing needs to be “done” in the USA? I say put them to work. The wheat will separate from the chaff. Is anybody over qualified to shovel down a road?
do you honestly think someone who has to provide for a family can afford ot take a job at a bar? esspecially when unemployment pays more?
and i KNOW the response is “well lower unemployment”, but if a bar job denst covor basic cost of living, you jsut make the situation worse. children starving to death is what we are talking about here.
“Oh, i dont think americans will let children starve to death”.. well, just give it a few months. The country is now blaming the unemployed for being unemployed. Next the Tbags will start saying the starving kids should work harder to garner pity. It is a selfish heartless road we are going down.
Ah, the old “if I can do it so can they” line. When unemployment is over 8%, any job you take is taking the job from someone else who won’t have it. Somebody, somewhere will still be getting unemployment benefits. Would you really rather collect the $330 a week? Do you really think it would pay your rent or mortgage? Why are you so stuck on “resentful”?
all those folks working at Drinking Liberally last night
How many job openings were there for bartenders and servers at the Blue Parrot last night? And if there were openings, is the Blue Parrot hiring people with no serving or bartending experience?
The current employment reality is that jobs — especially at certain levels — are just plain gone. There are not enough bartending, serving, landscaping, delivery or other low skill jobs out there to put a dent into close to 10% unemployment. That’s MILLIONS of people — facing the fact that all of these places are largely cutting back or at least making do with staff they have.
The lesson isn’t that there are too many redundant or unnecessary jobs — the lesson is that we live in an economy that is overly reliant on all of us buying stuff (70% of the economy is us buying stuff — NOT us making stuff) and when we stop buying stuff, lots of the economy goes into the trash bin.
Sorry, but he’s right about most work being unnecessary. Manufacturing simply doesn’t require the manpower it used to, no matter where it’s done. Machines are cheaper, which is why companies can keep production levels high while employment declines.
Here’s a link: http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2010/07/labor-force-realighment-and-jobless.html
Manufacturing simply doesn’t require the manpower it used to, no matter where it’s done. Machines are cheaper
It is even cheaper to sell the machines and live off your investments. We need to make it more expensive to sell off the machines (capital gains).
Capitalists aren’t happy anymore unless they are making an obscene killing with a locked-in customer base (i.e., GOP policies).
If they are only making a regular profit, or have to compete for customers, they will sell out and retreat to their villas.
nu uh, anon,
If the FREE MARKET, blessings of money be unto HIM, is kindly letting businesses make money, and if the evil government of the greedy people doesn’t STEAL the businesses profits (taxes), then they will ALWAYS do the right thing and hire more people, and pay a bigger wage.
that is how it works.
duh.
I have no idea what *most work being unnecessary* even means. Bonddad’s post is quite specific to the durable goods sector (something like 10% of the GDP), and shows that since about the 1990’s the manufacturing sector here has taken recessionary periods as a time to retool. Manufacturing employment did not come back to pre-recession levels, but manufacturing productivity did go back up. The employment hits are pretty much across the board in this recession. The service sector is coming back better than durable goods, but it is all anemic, which gets back to my point that there aren’t enough jobs for the 10% or so employable Americans who are looking for work.
I have made the point before that we may not see alot of the shed jobs come back — if Americans aren’t buying stuff and we aren’t exporting enough stuff we make to make up the difference it may be quite some time before we see employment back below 5%
Rollins doesn’t understand why unemployed people don’t go out there and try to marry someone rich, or just sell their yacht, or if things are really bad, cash in their inheritance bonds. Or maybe sell a few paintings.
Yup, Rollins is a dope but a rich dope so Ross, Forsten and Rakestraw love her.
When Rollins loses she will be drawing Medicare as her health care provider, maybe she will refuse or only take it for 99 months?
Proper response should have been to renew Medicare but say how to not add more to the debt? You know a sort of PAYGO the libs always claim to believe in?
“Proper response should have been to renew Medicare but say how to not add more to the debt”
This is why I support public option health care. A system driven to cover its own costs rather than generate obscene profits.
a.price – “now he’s pretending to be a landscaper.”
A buddy and I started what he coined “The Restaurant Crawl”. We would go around to four or five restaurants a night eating appetizers and drinking until we felt one of the restaurants was worthy of a main course. Seared foie gras with a nice Sauterne, monk fish liver, toro, oysters, always caviar.
A few bad decisions and investments later, and now I run a small landscaping business .
“The current employment reality is that jobs — especially at certain levels — are just plain gone.”
Great line!
Those “certain level” jobs ar gone because they were not really necessary anymore. Anyone know where I can find a good buggy whip man or computer salesman?
Obsolete.
“I have no idea what *most work being unnecessary* even means.”
It means that it’s make-work. The manufacturing sector is shrinking, and has been shrinking since the dawn of the industrial age. It will continue to do so. We can make enough stuff for the entire population by employing only a small fraction of that population (just as we can now grow food for the entire population employing just a small fraction of that population).
Most service-sector jobs are not a necessity. When people can afford lawn care services, those jobs exist. Years ago, people mowed their own lawns or hired the kids next door.
Outside of the health care field, jobs are created at the whim of the consumer. Jobs that increase productivity (IT, for example) more than pay for themselves. Most other service sector jobs, on the other hand, could disappear and life would go on.
Do you still not see what I’m getting at? For most jobs to exist, people must have disposable income. The more people who have disposable income, the more jobs exist. Which is why concentration of wealth is bad for the economy.
“…the lesson is that we live in an economy that is overly reliant on all of us buying stuff (70% of the economy is us buying stuff — NOT us making stuff) and when we stop buying stuff, lots of the economy goes into the trash bin.”
Ding ding ding! This needs to be emblazoned inside the skulls of every person on Capitol Hill.
This is especially prevalent in Sussex County, where convenience stores and gas stations seem to be the second-biggest employer after the poultry plants. We’re going to see a huge bubble pop and the unemployment rate skyrocket in mid-September when the beach restaurant jobs fold up.
Weren’t we supposed to have a Knowledge Economy a while back? Where everyone was highly educated and telecommuted to work? Sigh…
“Weren’t we supposed to have a Knowledge Economy a while back? Where everyone was highly educated and telecommuted to work? Sigh…”
Star Trek society would be nice, but someone still has to build those replicators. Good night, errr good day.
No, something has to build those replicators. It won’t be someone. If buggy whips were still needed, they’d be build by robots, just like those horseless carriages are.
Star Trek society would be nice, but someone still has to build those replicators.
You only need to build one…